Last month we had the honor, privilege, and time of our life (pun intended) at the pop punk/emo/alternative rock festival that has taken the world by storm over the last three years – When We Were Young. The fest’s über-current presence in today’s music scene mixed with the appreciation-based nostalgia for the soundtrack of many of our youths is something we thoroughly enjoyed reporting on and something we are very, very, very thankful for.
3OH!3 concerts are more than just a show, they are a full blown rave! And it’s been that way since their start 20 years ago! From the studio to the stage, headliners at Starland Ballroom to festival slots at Bamboozle, the hip-hop-meets-electronic-rock duo has always entertained. They consistently released songs with choruses that were not only anthemic, but also lively and catchy. It’s impossible to criticize them, simply because their music is such a blast. They don’t take themselves too seriously and their main mission is just fun.
The two members of 3OH!3 are Sean Foreman and Nathan Motte. They created the iconic songs that thousands of scene kids grew up on, so when we caught them backstage at When We Were Young Festival, we had to pull them over for a chat. We caught up with them and had the following fun, yet humble conversation about performing their WANT LP in full, going Platinum, and so much more.
Since we’re at When We Were Young and you’re playing WANT in full, we have to ask: how are you feeling, and what is going through your mind?
Sean: We’re feeling great! This album is 16 years old. There’s a lot of stuff that has obviously made our career. It’s really fun to see fans love it the same way we do! We’re playing songs we haven’t played in a while, so we’re ready to dust them off and let it rip.
Nathan: And see friends in other bands and also friends who are attending the festival! People who have come to shows all throughout the years, too. It’s really an amazing vibe.
Especially at a fest like this, fans are so hungry for it! You look at last year when you played – there were thousands of people. Tell me about playing to that kind of massive crowd.
Nathan: It’s amazing, man! We try to keep it the same no matter what size crowd it is. For us, we try to boil it down to a house party. I know that sounds weird, but that’s how it started. Our live shows are about just making sure everybody in the crowd has fun, feels included, and has a smile on their face. Whether that’s thousands of people like today – that’s fucking amazing – and makes the atmosphere huge or it’s 20 people in a basement… for us, it’s all the same, and it’s so much fun.
Photo by Val Avarco / When We Were Young
That makes sense! A lot of punk bands have incorporated synths in their sound over the years, but you were one of the first pioneers of synth-filled rock and pop rock. Looking back now at that choice, how do you feel?
Sean: That is all Matt [Squire] and his production! I guess that’s what we were trying to make. It was very synth-forward stuff. It was very electronic.
Nathan: We also didn’t have gear, so the synths were a program that was free that we pirated. A lot of times I think, especially early on in your career, the art is dictated by what’s available and what’s there. I guess that, for us, it was partially a conscious decision and partially a necessity.
I do want to talk about the sequel album, NEED in 2021. How was it making a sonic sequel?
Sean: For us, we had albums in between it, and at that point it was 10+ years since we had written WANT. We wanted to return to some of the basics of it. I think, honestly, we produced one of the songs how we used to do it: by kind of just having fun with it! Any of our best stuff is not too overly thought out. We just try to have fun with it.
Even the features on that record? You have 100gecs on that album and Bert McCracken is featured on “VAMPIRE’S DIET.”
Sean: Bert – we’re just big fans of his. It’s just incredibly fluid. I think Matt sent him the demo of what we had written and he just gravitated towards it immediately. It was pretty natural.
Nathan: I think it was his first and maybe only time recording himself. It was during COVID and he was in Australia. He did a great job. It was a NEED’s must situation.
You’re playing WANT in full this weekend. How is that? What is it like playing a record start to finish?
Nathan: We try to bridge the gap between doing it exactly like on the record and then also taking a few creative liberties to do some stuff. We want to make sure people hear at least most of it exactly how they want to hear it, but also, logistically, the record is an electronic record and live we play with a band. It’s going to sound a little different. I think we just try to walk the line between doing what makes us happy and I guess, most importantly, doing what makes other people feel happy. People love the record! It was fun! We definitely cut some shit down and definitely interpolated some stuff. We’re going to do it again tomorrow, so we’ll tell you how it goes!
Hell yes! Also, congratulations! “DONTTRUSTME” just went 5x Platinum last year. Huge milestone for the band.
Sean: Thank you! Yeah, and then the album itself went platinum, which is mind blowing to me. Obviously, growing up I never thought that. I would see other band’s albums go Platinum, but it’s a rare thing. We’re stoked.
Have you held the platinum record in your hands yet?
Nathan: No, but we got a Gold record. I think we got the biggest gold plaque that’s ever been made [Laughs]. It’s like a whole fucking wall. Matt Galle who ran photos for that record got it. I’ve honestly never seen a bigger plaque. It’s for a Gold record, which is sick, and not Platinum. No, we haven’t gotten the Platinum yet. We just have it in our hearts and in our heads… and tattooed on my face.
[Laughs] You guys are from Boulder, Colorado. Tell me about growing up in Boulder and the music scene there.
Nathan: Yeah, so it’s a small town, like 100,000 people, and a college town. Back in the day, we grew up listening to all our parents stuff, all the sixties and seventies folk, jazz, and everything. When we were coming up, there were really good underground hip-hop shows there. Then between Boulder and Denver there were good indie rock shows. It was a cool melting pot of stuff. Like I said earlier, we got together and made music because we just had fun making it. When it came time to make a live show, it was, “Let’s extrapolate that into one show that’s not taken too seriously.” It was a great incubator for our small business.
Of course! You talk about making fun music and making sure your live show is fun. Live, how do you make it feel like a party?
Sean: We just try our best to be honest. You show up, put your hat in, and hope that it’s reciprocated. I think that’s the biggest thing. How can you expect a crowd to reciprocate that energy if you don’t have it on stage? It’s about us trying to bring that energy and hopefully it’s reciprocated. Oftentimes it is! There have definitely been shows where it’s not, but it’s all about our party on stage and inclusivity of having everyone.
Nathan: Sean also had some sexy neon mesh on today.
Sean: That really helped! [Laughs]
It reflects off the fans! I quickly want to ask about the When We Were Young sideshow on Thursday. You co-headlined the reunion of Cobra Starship! This is a huge deal.
Nathan: It was amazing, man! We toured with them in 2010 and we did a full tour with Cobra and Travie [McCoy] from Gym Class Heroes. It was rad to see them again – see them and play music again! Just meeting fans that had been to our show on that run in 2010 and 14 years later everybody is different, grown up, have kids, and have jobs… It’s all the same family and it was just a really magical night.
Sean: We have a line in our song “RICHMAN” that’s like, “party ’til I’m 50,” and next thing I know, 10 years from now, that’ll be true.
Nathan: We’re much closer to that now than when we wrote it.
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